Fare at the fair: Attendees flock for all the eats in Rochester

ROCHESTER — Move over carnival rides, people are coming to the fair for the food.

"I come to eat," said Amy Majack of Exeter. "We went on one ride, but we just came for the food. Seriously," she said laughing.

The Ferris wheel may be a signature favorite and the haunted house might be a fun thrill, but the fried dough, cotton candy and other salty and sugary snacks keep visitors coming back every year to the Rochester Fair.

Majack and her boyfriend were seated at a picnic table in the heart of the food stands. They weren't planning on leaving that area. The two of them strictly came to eat.

"We're eating french fries and corn dogs now. We already had a steak and cheese and we're going to get some apple crisp and a caramel apple before we leave," she said.

When asked how her stomach would feel later, Majack shrugged. "I'll probably have a stomach ache," she said. Regardless, she'll keep tasting her way through the fair.

Majack isn't the only one. Several fairgoers said they couldn't leave until they had a piece of fried dough.

"It may be simple, but it's not at all," said Johan De Waal, a Fiesta Shows employee who makes fried dough for the fair. "It's just salt, sugar, yeast, water and flour, but you can top it with anything. We have apples, cherries, chocolate, sugar and maple syrup here, but at other fairs we use other things. People like this here, so we keep it here."

Noufa Buzzell, of Dover, made a pit stop to indulge in her treat, topping the dough off with powdered sugar. Her husband said they came for the rides, but had to have some sweets, too.

Nancy France of Gonic said fried dough is a favorite of the fair.

"With cherries on top, this time," she said. "I've never had it this way."

France said she wouldn't leave until she also purchases fudge and cotton candy. Her grandchildren from Maine accompanied her and had already had an ice cream cone before being spotted licking sugar and grease off their fingers from the fried dough.

"I'm spoiling them," said France.

"Fried dough is my favorite," said Britta Grimes of Rochester. Her friend, Ramsay Dean, agreed with her. The two of them didn't purchase it this year, though, and opted with ice cream instead. "If I eat anything else, I'll throw up!" Said Grimes.

The cotton candy booth argued that they believe they are still the most popular stand, but the workers frying food near the grandstand believe they are competition. The men have onion rings and french fries, but also fry pickles, Oreos, Reese's and Kool-Aid. Yes, Kool-Aid.

This is done by taking the cherry powder and mixing it into pancake mix or onion batter mix with flour. The Kool-Aid is mixed in with the batter and served like fried dough, but sweeter.

"I don't know what it is about the food," said Majack. "You can get it more often, but it feels like you can only get it once a year. That's what I like about it."